Still I Rise
by StarlessIris
Summary: "You may shoot me with your words. You may cut me with your eyes. You may kill me with your hatefulness. But still, like air, I'll rise." Change happens to most. Whether it's for good or bad no one knows. MorixOC Rated T for later chapters. Revised version of 'The Shy American Transfer Student'.


Life had a way of changing.

Whether if it was for good or for bad no one could tell.

Bright electric blue eyes stared out at the passing scenery outside of the moving vehicle.

He had been sitting in the vehicle for a while now and it gave him too much time to think. He thought back to a few hours earlier and the unmovable mask on his face slipped off and changed to one of pain. He could remember the scene vividly in his head since it happened not too long ago, but he knows that in the end he wouldn't ever forget it. The moment his life had changed completely and there was nothing he could do.

Three teens huddle closed together as the feeling of sadness was heavy in the air. He tried to stay calm and happy as he didn't want to make matters worse for the other two teens in front of him, but there was little he could do when the girl to his right, Hannah, was crying her eyes out as the boy to his left, Victor, tried to console her.

These two had been his best friends since he was young and he couldn't think of a day where they all weren't together. Yet here they were and there was he could do to stop from leaving them.

He remembers meeting Hannah when they were young and bonding over the clothing they wore and what flowers they thought were their favorites. He remembered when Victor had joined their friend group when he had moved to their school in their 5th grade year. Hannah had taken a liking to him and had asked him to hang out with them, and although he wasn't completely sure at first they had all grown incredibly close over the years.

And as he stood there in front of his only best friends he couldn't help but curse fate. He couldn't help but wish that they had more time together. He didn't know what the future would hold, but if it continued the way that his life has now planned to be then he couldn't help the feeling that they would never see each other again.

The moment that Hannah had removed her hands from her face to reveal her red eyes and the tears running down her face he couldn't help but run to both of them and gather them in a big hug. They all held each other tightly and said their final goodbyes.

They were interrupted as limo pulled up to the curb of street and a man in a clean black suit stepped out. He looked reluctant to end the grieving teens, but this was his job and he knew that if they didn't hurry along that they would miss the flight time and he would lose his job. The man walked over to the door of the limo, cleared his throat, and spoke.

"It's time to go or else you will be late sir…" He said softly as he felt bad for the huge change that would befall the teen.

Blue eyes shifted away from his friends to the man standing beside the open door of the expensive vehicle and nodded. He tucked a strand of pale, almost white, blonde hair behind his ears and fixed the black framed glasses on the bridge of his nose. He gave his friends one last hug and held them close enough so only they could hear.

"I don't know when and I don't know how but I will get in touch with you two somehow." He whispered as he would get in trouble if he was found out.

As he pulled away he gave them one last strained smile and one last goodbye before turning to get in to the limo and the door shut as soon as he was safely inside. He could see Hannah starting to break down crying again and watched as Victor embraced her in a tight hug. Although he was extremely angry and upset that he is being forced to leave the only life he has ever known behind he can't help but be thankful that they both still had each other. He hoped that they would both be able to survive as long as they were still together. He couldn't help but smile fondly at the two figures standing on the sidewalk as their bodies became smaller.

As soon as they were out of sight the smile fell and all emotion was wiped of his face. What replaced it was an emotionless mask that would hide his true feelings and his true self.

They want a perfect replacement and that's fine.

But he won't let them win this fight.

The moment the plane had landed he was forced into another sleek black vehicle and he was getting closer to his new home.

He felt sick.

He couldn't tell if it was from being away from what he called home or if it was because of all the anger he felt toward the situation, but it was not like there was anything he could do now.

A world that he knew no knowledge of passed by the car window and he couldn't help but marvel at all the new sights and sounds. No he wasn't happy to be in this situation but he couldn't help but be in awe of all the strange things going on around him.

He couldn't help but think that this place wasn't for him.

Everything was too different and although he had been forced into lessons to practice his speech and etiquette. Even after all those lessons actually being there made his mind go blank. He couldn't help but worry that he would mess up or that he would ruin everything that they had worked on to get to this point.

He shook his head and sat up straight as soon as he heard the driver mention that they were almost there.

He knew little of what they had planned or where exactly they were, but he had overheard many times where he would spend the rest of his schooling. It intrigued him yet terrified him.

Ouran Academy.

A renowned private school full of the kids of rich men and women. The only way in is to of course be a child of a wealthy family or get lucky and be granted a full scholarship through academics.

He knew that there was no way he would be able to go to Ouran Academy if the plan didn't call for it. In no way was he stupid, but he wasn't smart either. Just average. Nothing special.

He had no idea what the prestigious school looked like but the moment he looked back out the window and up the road he could tell that the tall towering building ahead was the place he had been dreading. There was no turning back. As soon as he got in the limo back home he knew there was no turning back only moving forward.

As the driver pulled the vehicle over to park on the side of the road he could see large groups of students standing around in hideous uniforms. The girls in gaudy yellow dresses and the boys in what looked like to be lavender or blue colored blazer and black trousers. Behind them the school was large and went on for miles. It shined in the bright sun and gave off an almost otherworldly feeling.

He was so focused on the amazing building that he hadn't notice the driver get out of the car and open the door for him to get out.

"Your grandfather wants you to use todays visit to collect your uniform and schedule as well as getting to know the place seeing as you will be going to school here for the next three years. When you are ready please call to be picked up." Came the voice of the driver waiting for him to step out of the vehicle. As he stepped out he was handed a brand new phone.

"All necessary contacts have been added to this phone seeing as your old phone is not of use."

He couldn't help the feeling of anger building as the man ignored the real reason his phone was taken away.

' _Lies. My phone was perfectly fine! They just want to erase the fact that I ever existed elsewhere. They want to cut me off from everyone back home.'_ He thought and he had to calm himself down as he felt his hand at his side clench into a fist.

The driver didn't say another word as he walked back to the vehicle, got in, and drove off.

"Excuse me are you Miyuki-san?" A sweet voice asked and he looked forward to find a girl dressed in the same bright yellow dresses like the other female students. She wore a bright friendly smile as he stood there waiting for an answer. Her stance was confident and she had long black hair that was half up and tied with a purple bow.

He focused back on what she had said and nodded his head and bowed to the girl. He suddenly felt nervous. This was something he would have to do a lot now. Coming to a new place meeting new people was inevitable, but he couldn't help, but be embarrassed. He guessed it wouldn't hurt to be a little bit more normal seeing as no one was there to yell at him if he didn't act the way he was taught.

"H-Hello yes that's me. You can just call me Miyuki for now…i-if you want to that is." He rubbed the back of his neck as he was still uncomfortable with the amount of formality that goes with being there. The girl just bowed back and sent a soft smile towards the young teen.

"Well it's nice to meet you Miyuki I'm Chieko Ashikaga. I'm here to help you find the office so that you can collect your class information and uniform. If you have any questions, please don't be afraid to ask. Now shall we head on inside…?" She said and turned to walk down the long pathway to the school. He quickly followed behind so that he wouldn't lag behind and get lost.

As they walked down the path towards the school some of the female students surrounding them on either side began to look over at them and would chat quietly with one another. They would sometimes giggle quietly and it made him nervous, but he didn't let it bother him for too long and kept moving.

Chieko told him about where certain important spots in the school were like the library and cafeteria while they headed to the office and soon they were there and he had the class information he needed and the uniform they had ordered for him.

"Thank you for showing me to the office and telling me a little bit about the school Ashikaga-san. I really appreciate the help since I had no clue where anything was." He said sheepishly and Chieko just waved him of as if it was no big deal.

"No worries Miyuki and you can just call me Ashikaga for now seeing as you want me to call you Miyuki. If you need any help please don't hesitate to ask me for help!" She bowed and smiled at him before walking off further into the school.

He watched her walk off and couldn't help but feel a little better about going to school there.

He was wrong.

He was so wrong.

He couldn't believe how wrong he had been.

After parting ways with Chieko he had decided to kill a little bit of time and wander around the school. It was a huge mistake on his part seeing as it was a lot bigger than he thought it was and had ended up getting lost. He felt like crying as he couldn't tell where he was compared to where he had been seeing as all the hallways looked almost exactly alike.

He knew he should have asked Chieko if she could give him a sort of small tour, but he hadn't wanted to bother her. As he passed doors he began to hear soft chatter and came to a door with the name 'Music Room 3'.

' _Maybe I could ask someone in here if they could direct me back to the entrance…'_ He thought and walked forward to push open the double doors.

He was blinded with a bright light and attacked by rose petals. He brought his arms up to cover his face in a reflex to protect himself.

A loud chorus of "Welcome!" Came from an array of voices causing the cowering boy to lower his arms out of his face and look up to glance at a group of boys in front of him. A look of shock came across his face as he stared at the scene around him.

A group of handsome boys standing together and the room was filled with tables and chairs. They looked surprised as well by him just standing there almost gawking at them. He was snapped out of his shocked state when he felt two arms wrap around his shoulders.

"Who is this...? Is he gay or something...?" A pair of twins said in unison and grinned down at him from where they stood on either side of him. He felt a tug on his jacket sleeve and the twin on his right spoke.

"Look at how plain he is dressed. Do you even go to school here…?" He heard what almost sounded like disgust in his voice and pushed them off of his shoulders.

'I don't think that my clothes are that bad looking…right?' He looked down at his attire that he had on. He was wearing a plain white t-shirt with his favorite dark blue baggy jacket on. What were supposed to be male skinny jeans were a bit baggy on him and on his feet were his white high top converse. He thought he looked normal, but now that he thought about it he wasn't supposed to look 'normal'.

"You devils! Be nice to our guest! Is it not our job to bring enjoyment to those who come into this room to bask in our handsomeness!" An overly dramatic blonde said waving his hands into many gestures as he spoke.

"Aren't you Akira Miyuki the who had just transferred here from America...?" Said a tall dark haired boy with glasses that caught the light when he adjusted them.

Akira looked up in surprise at him at this question and nodded slowly in response. A small blonde sprung up in excitement hugging Akira closely to him and spun him around as if he were weightless.

"WOW! AN AMERICAN! Almost as exciting as when Haruhi came here through a scholarship even though sh-HE is a commoner!" A brunette that was next to a tall dark haired boy with a small blonde haired...child(?) looked at the blonde in frustration and crossed his arms. I guessed this was the Haruhi they had mentioned. The twins hooked their arms around Akira once more while the grin they wore never left their face and they began to speak.

"Who knew the new transfer student-" "Would turn out to be gay.." One finishing the others sentence.

Akira flushed at this statement and stepped away.

"I-I'm not gay...! I-I just came to ask for directions...I got lost..." He said in a weak and embarrassed voice his face red. But the tall blonde seemed to have either ignored his answer or just had not even heard it at all.

"How rude of me for not introducing myself~!" He said before bowing like some kind of prince. "I am Tamaki Suoh, the King of the Host Club!" Akira couldn't help but flinch. The blonde was loud and obnoxious to him and he wanted to run away, but it was like he was cornered.

The blonde known as Tamaki continued to introduce the Host Club before Akira could even get a word in. Tamaki turned to the group of handsome boys and started with the dark haired one with glasses that had a serious expression on his face as he continued to write on a clipboard he had been holding.

"This is Kyoya Otori! Next are the twins Hikaru and Kaoru Hitachiin." He then pointed to the brunette that looked a little too feminine.

"Then Haruhi Fujioka, the tall silent one is Takashi Morinozuka, and the blonde boy holding the stuffed bunny is Mitsukuni Haninozuka~!" He smiled a big goofy one rather than the one known as Kyoya who seemed to sigh in irritation. The twins came up close began observing Akira from all sides.

"Hey isn't he cute...? He looks so feminine and fragile for a guy." Said one of them and the other continued. "Yeah I think I heard that all the girls outside seemed to be fawning over him when he arrived now that I think about it…"

At this Tamaki came up too close for comfort and stared the boy in the face. His smile then widened as he hugged Akira in a big "bear hug".

"You really are so cute!" He yelled and spun Akira around. He wasn't comfortable with the attention and was feeling sick from the spin so he pushed Tamaki and forced him to release Akira. Akira however lost his balance and stumbled backwards hitting his head on a nearby table.

He heard something break and concerned voices, but they faded away as he fell unconscious from the hit to the head.


End file.
